194, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

A movie about a rich sheik bringing the sport of fly-fishing to Yemen is not exactly up there with Iron Man, Thor and the boys (and girl) from the Avengers as far as 'action attraction' goes but its a timely reminder that smaller films do actually exist when blockbusters hit the scene and to keep you humbled and grounded I would strongly recommend taking the time to catch this little gem before its pushed out to make way for the Summer fest of epics we are expecting.

Emily Blunt's firm represents a rich eastern Sheik, with money to burn and a passion to re-invent the Yemen River as a fly-fishers paradise which not only requires the right water but climate as well and not to gorget the Salmon themselves before anyone can actually take his plan seriously.  Fisheries expert and slight 'asbergers' scientist Ewan McGregor is the go-to guy to act as project manager who initially laughs the idea right out of the office but when Downing Street gets wind of it as a way to increase Anglo / Arab relations it becomes a steamroller of discovery that takes McGregor, Blunt and a comical Kristin Scott Thomas all the way to Yemen and with the luxury of a 'money no object' philosophy, everyone is free to realise the most important lessons in life are worth the pursuit, regardless of barriers.

The movie itself does seem to take a little longer to actually get going with McGregor taking a longer than needed time frame to actually fully get on board but nether less he is really good in this, as is co-star Emily Blunt who again, oozes cuteness on every level.  There are also some worthy secondary stories with Blunt & McGregor both in relationships and each with their own troubles in the background but the obvious "will they, wont they" does last right up until the final scenes, although to be honest - I'm sure you've already guessed it!

Billed as a romantic comedy I was struggling to see where the humour would come from.  An Asset Management Consultant and Fish Scientist do not immediately scream 'Anchorman' but its the part of Scott Thomas as the PM's press secretary who is responsible for all of the laughs.  Her far removed attitude from her role is well received and although the comedy all appears unintentional, its scripted brilliantly with the relationship between her, the PM and the foreign Secretary is all very tongue in cheek.

As for the Sheik himself, well his character is well educated and shows clarity in his mission, understanding the Western ways but at the same time not pushing his beliefs a onto our leading twosome.  Its only a matter of time until McGregor is completely in it for the long haul with 'Faith & Fish' taking on a resounding philosophy throughout.

It's not all sweetness and light though like The Blindside or Exotic Marigold Hotel - there's some heartache, trauma and sabotage thrown in for good measure that make it far more realistic as the building of a dam, transportation of 10,000 salmon & ecological impact would be totally unbelievable without a single hitch taking place.  Throw in a few love triangles and an assassination attempt and in my mind - you've got most of the boxes ticked.

There's not much more to say about this movie.  Its a small, British movie from three companies including The 'BBC' and manages to get across quite a simple message.  How you perceive that message is up to you and where some of you may find it ploddy and in places, slow - I felt it heartwarming and uplifting.  Maybe I'm going soft in my old age?  

 

193, Lockout

Guy Pierce, Remember him? Well he was Mike in Neighbours and if your 30+ you'll remember - don't you dare say you don't!  A normal soap star turned movie ledge is among us as Guy (after departing Ramsey Street & Home and Aways Summer Bay) graced our presence on the big screen with classics such as LA Confidential, Rules of Engagement, The Time Machine, The Hurt Locker & The Kings Speech before landing this master piece on us which to my knowledge could essentially define a generation? (or not!)

Well, Pierce plays Snow (Informer.......sorry!) a wreck of a special Ops CIA agent who's called into take down a space based prison that falls foul to the control of its inmates whilst having the (fit) first daughter on board although un-be known to them at the time (as they've been cryogenically frozen for a wee while) and it is down to one man to get on board, get the Presidents 1st born and escape unharmed from a group of complete nut jobs and if possible, take out the entire space station in the process - There's nothing like reality in the big screen these days!

So - lets get cracking with the SFX, there shockingly bad.  Sorry - but they are. 

Its set way way way way in the future and the only way you can tell this (prior to the space stuff) is with a dreadful 'Tron' style bike rip-off chase through some unknown major US city but it plays out like a dodgy PlayStation 2 game with OTT graphics and a sense of sheer frustration to get through it and get to the 'spacey stuff' - which luckily it does remarkably promptly.

Guy Pierce is a wise cracking fruit loop with a few one liners that will make you proper chuckle along as he bowls through sarcastic comment after sarcastic comment with the pinnacle 'B.J' gag added just for the hell of it but rather than infuriate the viewer it actually comes across quite well.

The first daughter (played by Maggie Grace, Irena for all the Twi-hards out there) is well played but annoyingly & expectantly 'cutesey' and the lead baddie, Vincent Regan (Ghost Rider & some major UK TV roles) is marginally average but for me there is only one winner here, and he's not been mentioned yet...........

May I officially take my hat off to my new favourite baddie (and this is only due to the sad departure of Heath Ledger - Heath, your Joker was unbeatable!) JOSEPH GILGUN.

I don't know who you are or where you come from but by crikey to made this movie come alive! 

After some research it appears that wee Joseph is not such a N.K.O.T.B with Uk roles in Corrie and Shameless (Legend?) but until now - you were unknown to me!  He's without doubt the best bad guy, nut job, one eyed phyco freak Irish weirdo on your silver screen this side of The Dark Knight and I urge EVERYONE to take the time to put up with snivelling Snow and prissy Emilie just to witness this guy in action. For those who doubt, the last photo is of him in this and it makes your skin crawl that someone can be so good in a single role. 

Yes the space prison stuff is impressive and the plot is very debatable but for me - its all about the Gilgun.  You Rock!

192, Gone

Amanda Seyfried has been noted in a few blogs of recent years, I can say that now as I approach blog 200 but in each one she seems to 'Man-up' just a little but more and I wont be surprised if by 2020 she's the 'Angelina Jolie' of the new decade but after her meagre beginnings in  Mama Mia & Dear John and then the brilliant In Time and Red Riding Hood this one time Hollywood sweetheart is toughening up for a new generation and quickly leaving behind the defenceless girlfriend persona and making waves of her own which is nothing to be ashamed off.

'Gone' focuses on Seyfrieds character Jill who sadly is burdened with the 'Cry Wolf' tag as no one believes she was abducted and almost killed by a local psycho until her sister suffers the same demise and Seyfried sets out with cops a plenty in tow to prove her case, find her sister and catch the bad guy responsible before the night is out.

As far as action movies go this doesn't have the clout of the big boys but there is an element of suspense with the 'Is he? Isn't he?' the bad guy cropping up every now and again.  The supporting cast of Daniel Sunjata (One for the Money), Jennifer Carpenter (Faster), Sebastian Stan (Captain America) & Wes Bently (Hunger Games) all play second fiddle to Seyfried's lead role and in a way that's not a bad thing as she really stands on her own in this one, covering most of the emotions most of us only experience in an entire lifetime but in the same breath, remaining innocently cute and cuddly to the point where you just want to pick her up, take her home and tell everythings going to be alright.

This isn't turning into a gush fest for Seyfried (bar the fact all the photos are of her?) but don't get me wrong, I'm not a 'Mama Mia' fan in the slightest but the potential here is significant for future productions.  As the actual movie is not groundbreaking in any way it does seem to draw even more focus to Amanda, a kind of CV for the next 12 months which sees our Hollywood starlet appear in no less than four new releases, all unknown to me except the movie adaptation of Les' Miserables but as with the rest of you, I'm sure the appeal of A.S will lure me in and I'll gush some more.

So, before my wife gets too jealous I'll sign off - My final thought on the movie?  Well, its a disappointing end.  As usual, no spoilers here but lets just say I feel they missed a trick which was a bit of a let down and it ended as abruptly as a fart in a lift but whats not to (secretly) love about those bad boys!

191, Battleship

Not many Boardgames get made into movie blockbusters.  Hasbro (the company also behind Transformers) developed battleships for the common game playing audience by asking each player to position their ships strategically on a board, blind to their opponent and it was taken in turns to call out grid references (D1, A7 etc) until the much appreciated "hit!" resounded from the other side of the screen - then after a few successive strikes the all familiar words of "you sunk my battleship" could be heard and it was game over - so turning this basic 1 on 1 classic into a multi million $ blockbuster was always going to be a toughie as well as keeping to the origins of the game - well against all belief, they seem to have managed it.

Firstly, lets start on the basics - a cleverly thought out 'old school' game of cat and mouse takes place mid way through the movie pitting the wits of the weapons team on a battleship, blinded by alien technology against a far superior race of Aliens.  Restricted use of satellite due to the alien involvement means the US Navy have to rely on a tsunami wave alert system, used to grid out the ocean using basic radar technology with the ship central on their ZX Spectrum style display, plotting grid references as the alien ship surfaces on the screen to fire missiles at it as it hones in on their location - basic game play but key to the title and allowing the movie remaining core to its origins.  Something I greatly enjoyed.

So with the Battleship element explained, onto the cast - Taylor Kitch, fresh from the disastrous 'John Carter' really proves himself in this as the lead and regains (hopefully) a whole heap of respect from movie goers as he blends comedy, stupidity and navy style heroism at every turn, even including a rip-off 'You Tube' sketch of a botched shop robbery but for those who are familiar with the original will chuckle along. 

Liam Neeson is brilliant, albeit it to sparsely used as he is stuck for most of the movie outside the alien barrier but true to American form - manages to arrive just in the nick of time.  Then there's Rhianna, not there as I initially though as the "Erika Eleniak" character so cheekily portrayed in 'Under Siege' but an actual gun toting action babe, who although doesn't have much to say manages to avoid barring flesh for kicks and actually acts, using actual acting talent and on merit alone, deserves her role among the great cast. 

There are plenty of other actors as well who pitch in and to be honest - none really let the side down and there are mini sub-plots bouncing throughout to keep the story alive and not making it just about a board game.

Now the Aliens.  Well as humanoid (ish) organic life forms, requiring heavy duty sunglasses to deal with our Sun's light they are actually well though out - the special effects of the ships are on parr with that of Michael Bay's Transformers although it still is a bit off the pace and action levels that Optimus and Bumblebee manage to display but nevertheless I felt they were well perceived. 

The action not only takes place on the Battleship, but Kitche's Mrs (and daughter to Admiral Neeson) unknowingly manage to leads a ground attack as they try to stop the Alien involvement on Hawaii, with the bad guys using our tracking satellites against us and signalling to their planet to come and help out with the invasion.  By enrolling the help of a techno nerd and an ex-Marine with replacement legs after losing them in Afghanistan (I think) our unlikely trio manage to stage a full scale defence with great success! 

Sadly though - there is also a downside and if you are a stickler for realism (forgetting the aliens etc) then you will be disappointed in the way they manage to chuck these full scale warships around (including the retired SS Missouri).  Ever though of reversing a ship of that size from stationary to the point is almost wheel spins out of the way of a torpedo or even using the anchor to complete handbrake turns?  Well, whats not to love in a Hollywood American blockbuster as Kitch manages to pull both off as if its as simple as a walk in the park and he manages to enrol a group of ageing retired Navy men (and I believe original crew of the Missouri) to help out as the mechanics of the ship are too dated for our current band of brothers to operate.  Its basically Space Cowboys on water.  Very O.T.T, but comical just the same.

For action and robot buffs then this is actually really good - not to realistic on the alien & Battleship front but manages to stay true to its origins (in part) and as far as movie versions of board games goes - well it did its job.  Lets just hope Downfall, Connect 4 & Ker plunk get the same treatment - now that will be Dull!

190, The Cold Light of Day

Its been a quiet few years at the Box Office for Bruce Willis with 'Red' in 2010 being his last notable performance but this is soon to change as The Cold Light of Day sees him kick start a run of 8 movies in the next 18 months with titles including G.I Joe 2, Expendables 2, Kane & Lynch and (yet) another Die Hard movie so is this movie a welcome back to the action roles of old that Willis is so known for?  Well, lets just say that Willis brings to this the same as Seagal bought to Executive Decision - so with that in mind, lets movie swiftly onto the rest of the cast.

I say rest of the cast, predominantly this means Henry Cavill who fresh from playing Theseus in Immortals and a previous 4 year stint in TVs, The Tudors is relatively unknown on such a grand scale so make the most of him as you wont see him on our screen again until the Superman re-make, 'Man of Steel' set for 2013. 

Cavill plays a business consultant - on a trip to begrudgingly see his parents in Spain for a small family reunion.  After a quick pop to the shops, Cavill returns to the family yacht to find it ram sacked and his family missing.  Very soon we discover 'daddy' Willis is not all he appears to be and comes clean as a CIA operative.  Before long its Cavill who has to step up from Consultant to Action Man to secure a briefcase and return it to the Mossad captors in order to secure the release of his family.

As for Cavill himself, well he's pretty good in this and well matched against his worthy adversary in the form of the icy Sigourney Weaver who also plays dodgy spook with immense ease.  Cavill finds solace in a few locals one of whom turns out to be family (which is nice) and what plays out is quite a fast paced thrill ride throughout Madrid with moped chases, bar fights and a few close shaves for Cavill, his helpers and dear old Dad.

Its hard to sum up a movie like this one.  It wont be the best action / spy movie you have ever seen and it just feels like a little stop gap between Summer blockbusters, a 'something for the weekend' but nothing to really write home about.  That doesn't mean its poor, I enjoyed the presence of Willis and Weaver back on the big screen and my official introduction to Cavill as a potential new action hero was definitely well received but something just made me hold back on a full blown gush fest.

Madrid look great shot at a 'thrill ride' pace and the local 'help' compliment the location with superb ease.  As with all great spy movies, you never get to find out whats actually in the sought after briefcase but surely that's half the fun.  its not the longest review but its hopefully got the message across - If all those Easter Eggs are playing on your waist-line then put them down, get in the car and head off to see this for a welcome rest byte.  You could do a lot worse.

189, Mirror Mirror

Easter Movie #2 and this time its off to see the most recent incarnation of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.  A timeless classic re-invented on the big screen with non other than screen legend Julia Robers heading up the cast as the Wicked Stepmother / Queen.  There are a few tweaks this time around but a majority of the story remains the same.

Snow's mum dies at birth, King re-marries, he then mysteriously disappears and our heiress ends up banished to her room until on her 18th birthday she ventures into the village to discover its amass of poverty and hunger, not the singing and dancing fairyland she once remembered. 

A jealous Queen orders her death in the woods but now skint, aims to bag herself a handsome new prince and Snow is lovingly saved thanks to a 'caring' butler (not woodsman) and runs across seven adorable dwarf thieves who re-style her into a 'Pirates of the Caribbean' style heroine determined to marry the prince herself, take back her fathers kingdom and put an end to the evil queens reign.

So, no real drama.  Just as Disney 'originally' wrote it albeit with a few differences.  Firstly, the full 'working' title is "Mirror Mirror: The Untold Adventures of Snow White" so they are looking at a definite new angle - more of a swashbuckling adventure rather than a ploddy fairytale.  Then there's the Queen herself, Roberts plays a blinder and managed to pull off evil and comical with a single breath.  Snow herself is gorgeous, Lily Collins (Phil's daughter) stepping out in her fourth movie to date and making a name for herself as in my eyes, not a duff movie on the resume with The Blind Side, Priest & Abduction already tucked safely under her belt.

Now the stars of the show - The Dwarfs.  Forget Sleepy, Happy and Dopey - let me introduce you too Napoleon, Half Pint, Grub, Grimm, Wolf, Butcher & Chuckles.  The new clan of lost souls, living wild in the woods, thieving from the queen at every opportunity and crying out for a female touch around the hollowed out log they reside in. 

These guys manage to add humour & action to our proceedings and along with Snow, make a devilish army of little rascals and not to be taken lightly.

Other notable performances from Sean Bean and Nathan Lane are well received as is most of the household staff who remember the castle as it should be from times gone by and luckily, all remain firmly on Snow's side.

The only character left is the Prince, played by Armie Hammer (Social Network, Gossip Girl) who is every inch as suave and sophisticated as any great Prince should be but with the added flair of managing to bounce of Julia Roberts with sincere ease, making their scenes together laughable and enjoyable, especially the 'Puppy Love' bit. 

What else is there to say about a tried and tested classic.  No-one is going to be brave enough to remake Snow White and royally mess it up - unless Tim Burton has a pop at it but luckily, Burton and his muse, Johnny Depp are back with their own 'spooky' marvel later this year [Dark Shadows] which from the outset - looks like a re-invention of the Addams Family - but way funnier.

So, Collins is adorable, Roberts is brilliant, Hammer is dapper and the dwarfs are sublime.  Parents and kids alike - you should all enjoy this one.

188, StreetDance 2

You can tell its half term as being dragged along to this was definitely not one of my 'to-do's' for the few days off I have over the Easter Break but although my daughter has spoken of nothing but this movie for the past 6 months it was only fair to saddle up and head down to the multiplex to make all her dreams come true.

Secretly, I have to admit I was kind of looking forward to it myself (a little bit), there is no denying that the quality of top end dance acts on our TV screens nowadays in shows such as America's & Britain's got Talent etc have raised the barr and with a pumping soundtrack and supposedly the worlds elite dance crews on the big screen whats not to enjoy?

This blog will be broken down into three sections.  firstly the Dancing, then the acting and to end, the finale.  Each worthy of its own little piece of 'page time' but all for very different reasons.  If I could sum this movie up in three words it would be Dreadful, Awesome and Disappointing.  But what matches with what.

Well lets start with the Dreadful.  Sorry, but the acting and script in this was truly shocking.  I know its going to be almost impossible to train some of the Hollywood elite to dance to this standard overnight which is why the cast are mainly made up of epic street dancers (barring Tom Conti) which sadly left a majority of the characters empty, wooden and down right boring to watch and listen too when they weren't 'busing a move'.  George Sampson just doesn't cut it on the big screen and the plank that played the lead role 'Ash' has less emotion than a chicken drumstick. 

The rest of the 'Crew' were just there for looks and moves although to be fair to them, they each play their 'stereotypical' dance roles to perfection.  Luckily though there is somebody who actually can act and reprising a role that only really can be compared to a previous performance in Shirley Valentine, Tom Conti ads a refreshing breath of thespian air to proceedings and manages to salvage a movie out of this rather than it just playing out like an elongated dance-off.

Moving swiftly onto the Awesome.  Well, no surprise here but its the dancing.  You will be hard pushed to find a better choreographed 90 minutes of screen time, ever.  Individually each have their own styles and stories and the idea of bringing together a crew of individuals and making it work as a tight team means we have some pretty huge ego's all battling for the spotlight but in each its cool headed Ash and to the latter of the movie, Eva who bring it all together in a seamless combination of Street & Latin that throughout the movie is truly inspiring.  The Music helps with some brilliant remixes of a culmination of recent chart hits and it wont be long before you are toe-tapping your way through practise session & dance battles which luckily happen frequent and often which is a good things due to acting being so terrible.

Sadly, I have to end of the disappointing.  The climax battle in Paris where our crew of individual misfits square off against the "Champs" just seems to lack any form of quality.  Don't get me wrong, its good but it just seems to be way off par compared to the practises and underground comps completed to get them to that stage.  I'm no dance champ but even I was well prepared for something breathtaking towards the end and it just never came - it actually made me wish I'd paid more attention at the frequent interludes throughout the movie as they definitely captured the class you'd hope for when watching a movie about street dancers.

If you have kiddie Cheerleaders or budding Street Dancers in your brood there is no denying they will love it.  In fact, most kids under 13 will think it could be the best movie ever but look a little deeper and it misses a fair few boxes.

187, Wrath of the Titans

You only have to look back at Blog 30, way back in April 2010 to understand that regardless of the critics opinion, I was a Titans fan.  Growing up as an illiterate child in a literate household my only bedtime reading salvation was a book entitled 'Myths & Legends'.

Night after night (and you have to understand that this was a time when TV had 4 channels and a bedroom TV was only for celebs such as Russel Harty & Benny Hill) I would see myself to sleep with tales of Perseus, The Minotaur, Cyclops, Beowulf, Grendel etc and dream of Greek Gods looking down from on high, commanding prayers from mere mortals to allow them the power to keep under lock and key the Titans that would destruct the world given half a chance. 

Even though Critics slated the first movie I still found it easy to apply sincere gratitude for some of my childhood memories being finally projected onto the big screen for all to enjoy and the thought of a sequel -well, lets just say that this film is by far in my Top 3 of 2012 anticipated titles behind the last Batman movie and The Avengers but did it uphold my childhood ambitions of greatness?

Well, Yes.  Although not all would agree.  Firstly, lets get this whole 3D thing put to bed right now. 3D has been around since forever & in many guises but its fair to say the most recent carnation is by far the best but its still sadly only an afterthought.  The first Titans movie was a disappointing 3D experience and the lure of a potential 'Real 3D' is what we all dream of - this does not have it.  Again, as an after addition it only adds depth of field and to be frank, 2D will be just as impressive so from a non-critics, critics eye - only pay for 3D if its advertised as "Real 3D" (as the Avengers will be) and you wont be disappointed.

So after 4 paragraphs its actually time to talk about the movie.  I Loved it!  It starts a good 12 years after the first one with Perseus sadly widowed (possibly from Gemma Arterton but I'm not sure) and living the life of a lowly fisherman with son in tow, still in contact with daddy Zeus but by no means taken the godly throne he is so entitled too. The story follows an uprising in the Heavens where Perseus's half brother Ares defies Zeus and works with Hades to release Kronos, father to the brothers three and the plan to bring persecution back to the mortals and destroy earth.  Perseus, cousin Agenor, Queen Andromeda and a whole army of followers set off to bring down Ares and Hades with  a surprising result to bring peace to earth as we know it, and that's all your getting - no spoilers here!

Worthington, Neeson & Feinnes all return (brave move) to rekindle their roles and this time the female presence sees Arterton swapped out for former Brit 'Bond' babe Rosamund Pike (OOOOoosh!)  In addition to the aforementioned cast its Toby Kebbell (Garsiv from Prince of Persia) who gets my nod of appreciation for his slightly comical portrayal of Poseidon's son and like minded demigod Agenor.  A brilliantly cast role and one that manages to add a few chuckles along the way.

But here's the real good bit - being only 99 minutes long it does not take too much time to get going and the introduction of a Cyclops, Minotaur and finally, Kronos himself as the 'baddies' are nothing short of utterly spectacular.  These were my childhood villains finally visualised as I expected them to be and not a fleeting snapshot as the Kraken was in part one but long, sweeping shots that held prowess on the 70ft screen in front of me, each one offering a awe inspiring gasp from my hidden child within.

From the second Perseus mounts Pegasus on his quest my heart started beating double time.  Cyclops was my favourite mythological creature of all time, and they give us three of the bad boys!  Then the Minotaur - only in it for a few minutes but exactly as I expected to find him, in a labyrinth with no apparent way out, Superb. Finally, Kronos himself, father of the Gods - exactly portrayed as he was in my mind and seemingly replicated from the Titans edition of the P.C classic, Age of Empires (The Titans) - all of my dreams were coming true!

I'm getting over dramatic but my love for these stories just wont let me hear a bad word against them.  Even the surprising portrayal of lost God Hephaestus, played by the utterly brilliant Bill Nighy managed to add further elements of unexpected humour to our pretty bleak story of loss and trauma and I for one loved every minute of it - even though the 3D was dismal!

Forget the press, forget the cash or the stigma surrounding this one - if you're like me and you like your blockbusters big and bold then this is a great story. 

I must admit thought (sheepishly) that even I still have to rank this 3rd on my list of potential great 2012 movies - The lure of the last Batman by Chris Nolan or even the culmination of every great Marvel hero which has come to pass over a decade of movie incarnations, together on the silver screen is just too much to wish away the top spot to a dodgy 3D sequel - Sorry.

Most importantly & like it or not, its way better than part 1, so for the die hard fans among us (and there is one like minded soul who I know will read this, Mr Box!) don't let the critics put you off - step forward and enjoy - I certainly did!

186, The Hunger Games

I am convinced that Hollywood keeps bashing out these literary movie incarnations just to make me look silly!  Okay, so maybe those 'in the know' in Hollywood don't actually know who I am but again I am faced having to write a blog based on the first of a trilogy of novels I had never heard of while the rest of the known world seems to be already in love with and, in awe of the stories written by Suzanne Collins that chart the plight of a population from a not too distant future in North America, now split into 12 Districts after a historic revolution.  Having lost, as seeming punishment each District must annually offer up one boy and girl (against their wishes) aged between 13 & 18 as a sacrifice or 'tribute' as they are known to attend as contestants in the Hunger Games - a deadly seek and destroy game where only one can survive to the applause of the city residents. 

To break this down for the non-literate or anyone over 30 years old, think of it as "The Running Man" meets "The Fifth Element"?  Is everybody on the same page?  Good, we will continue.

Sadly, I was not too taken with it initially but before you lynch me, stating its the next big thing and is going to make Twilight look like yesterdays laundry let me explain why.

Over the past few years I have seen first instalments of The Golden Compass and the Last Airbender, both seemingly quite good but alas, having parts 2 & 3 axed due to a poor turn out in cinemas.  This one though apparently has the legs, taking a whopping $155m in it's opening US weekend alone, 3rd behind Harry Potter Part 8 and the Dark Knight!  So maybe this one wont go away as I initially might have guessed.

I first thought that the kids having to take part would all be treated as prisoners but in all honesty it was the opposite - although a fight to the death and feared in the individual districts its a real heroes welcome for the contenders as they are treated to a fortnight of 'celebrity' during their induction to the media and their subsequent training that sees the overall winner collect great riches and accolades for their victory.  Something treasured by those in District 1 who are trained specifically for the honour whereas for our stars of the movie hailing from District 12 its quite the opposite - an almost certain untimely death and one dreaded among the parents and their kin.

My comparison are definitely accurate, more so the Fifth Element one for the costume, pomp and ceremony from the higher classes which almost mirrors characters seen in the Bruce Willis classic whereas the Running Man part may be better described as Gladiator but you'll need to draw your own conclusions.

The cast is awesome though - the main two contenders from District 12 are the stars of the books portrayed brilliantly on screen by Jennifer Lawrence (X-Men First Class) and Josh Hutchinson (Mysterious Island) with a back room ensemble including Woody Harrelson, Donald Sutherland, Stanley Tucci, Lenny Kravitz and an almost unrecognisable Elizabeth Banks (Miri from Zak & Miri make a Porno as well as much more) as Effie Trinket. 

The big news is the cutting of 7 seconds of footage that allowed the classification board to award this a 12A from a 12.  Seemingly to allow a far wider audience into it.  Well, whatever they did actually cut from the final presentation still wont make me take my 8 year old along to see it as its kept a lot of the violence that made this such a winner in the first place.  Kids still die, squirrels still get skinned and Lenny Kravitz still manages to reasonably act quite well which was a pleasant surprise but for any parent, I'm convinced that 10 is about the max for this movie.

Then there's the actual end of the movie.  Having not read the books I cant express my opinion on how closely it relates,  I can tell you it seems wide open for a sequel so it looks like they've not closed it all off in one go and I suppose time will tell if part 2 ever makes it to the big screen.  At this time - none of the cast on IMDB are listed as being in pre-production, at least not this side of 2013 so for all you die hard fans out there, its fingers crossed.

As far as trilogy's go it has potential.  The back story and the characters were believable and well acted.  It was brilliantly cast and I completely bought into the class difference and the games themselves.  As a first try, it did pretty well, but the real test will be if the rest of the story makes it to the silver screen - for that we will have to wait and see.

185, We Bought a Zoo

There is something warm and fluffy about a good true story.  Take 'The Blind Side'.  Now tell me that movie did not make you leave the cinema just feeling bit great about yourself?  I know it did, and the best bit was it was true, okay - probably over romanticised to make it more 'Hollywood' friendly but it definitely ticked a lot of boxes.  Well, We Bought a Zoo should hopefully do exactly the same.

Matt Damon plays a widowed dad, left parenting two kids after the sad passing of his beloved wife.  After a few months of wading in despair, purposely avoiding their old haunts, being daily accosted by the single mum's on the school run with requests of dinner dates and re-heated lasagna he decides to up sticks and move to somewhere new, away from the past and onto greener pastures. 

Damon and his totally adorable 6yr old daughter fall in love with a country pad (against the quite hapless but comedic letting agents advise) that comes with plenty of land and a fully operational albeit closed, Zoo, complete with a full compliment of volunteer staff and a pretty sexy head keeper (Scarlett Johansson).  One set of life savings later and Damon is master and chief of the whole place and sets about re-building it to its former glory with the dreams of a Summer opening and a chance to really make a business and home for his family and those in his employment.

There are so many different plot lines here it does feel that one mans real life could not really be such a roller-coaster from Matt upping and leaving his high paid journalist job to become a Zoo Keeper / Owner to the eldest son, at a point of sheer loathing for his dad who took him away from his friends.  Then there are the loyal Zoo workers, all still arriving daily even without a pay check at the end of the month because of their love for the animals and the moody Zoo moderator who they have to convince to sign off the Zoo for re-opening. 

For me, this many twists and turns did not matter - it was a very enjoyable story and one made better by the brilliant acting of Damon and Johansson in the lead roles but backed up with some pretty impressive performances from the kids (Colin Ford and Maggie Elizabeth Jones) as well as the mostly non-committed brother, played by Thomas Hayden-Church.

My only negative is it does feel a little long.  I'm not sure of the exact time but I was getting a bit fidgety towards the end.  If you like your love stories though this will tick a few boxes.  There are relationships all over the place mainly between Damon and Johansson but more distinctively between Damon's son and Johansson's niece who works there 'off the books' and does come across well as the naive country girl and who falls quite deeply in love with our moody city lad.

The absolute star of this movie though is not the Lions, Bears or Tigers.  Its not even Matt Damon or Scarlett Johansson but its the remarkably adorable performance from Maggie Elizabeth Jones.  This is her first credited role and I challenge any of you not to have the total "Ahhhhh" factor when she is on screen.  A great little talent who defiantly shone through against a pretty impressive A-list.

Again, there are bits that seem to have been over romanticised but it even 50% of the story is true then its quite a compliment to the Mee family who too this day, still run, maintain and live at the Rosemoor Wildlife Park in California. 

What does make me chuckle though - and will do to long after this day are the critics / fact finders who actually take the time to write the following;   'The movie continuously refers to the zoo's upcoming opening day as Saturday, July 7, 2010. July 7, 2010 was actually a Wednesday'.  Really?  Have you nothing better to do? 

See it and love it - This is a great great family movie.

184, 21 Jump Street

Back in 1987, 21 Jump Street was an American TV show that ran until 1991 starring Johnny Depp and a team of young, undercover cops specialising in youth crime, predominantly posing as school kids.  Skip forward 25 years and this movie re-make has gracefully stayed completely true to the original in a way that makes it a privilege to be reincarnated, rather than a cringe worthy attempt to re-kindle an old classic.

What makes this movie 'do-over' stand out from the rest is its immediate and repetitive jibes at itself, even with a line by Channing Tatum stating "its just another ploy to re-do old programs" or something to that effect, but when you actually get into it the pairing of a noticeably thin Jonah Hill and the normally wooden Channing Tatum bouncing off each other like squash balls in a wooden box it becomes a complete joy to behold.

Okay, so maybe that's a bit too gushy for a comedy but from the immediate outset we are identified with stereotypical genres and characters that defined High Schools since at least the late 80's.  The cool jocks and the nerdy geeks are easily recognisable in Hill and Tatum and the 'Eminem' likeness is quite spooky! But our unlikely BFF's, although despising each other through School end up on the same police academy training and using each other talents, form a pretty solid bond that's almost too realistic but in no way creepy or dull. 

When our two slightly deluded cops are bounced to Jump Street to work undercover in the newly re-formed division of high school infiltrators its Ice Cube in his most stereotypical role to date that acts and commander and chief and the immediate expectation of them reprising their own high school lives is all but guaranteed until our heroes discover that the high school kids of today aren't womanising meat heads but 'cool' stands for eco-diesel and 'Save the Planet' while the geeks are blowing up stuff and hacking phones - all of a sudden, a normally shy and retiring Hill becomes "Too Cool for School" and Channing's normally Witty one liners and hit first, speak later attitude is seen as an embarrassment to modern living so roles are spun on their head and its Hill who turns player while Channing has to settle for science class and both are hilariously thrown into unfamiliar territory.

The plot is a simple one, detect and investigate an in-house drug circle and bring down the suppliers and dealers but that does seem to take a total back seat to the laugh out loud humour presented to us by Hill and Channing in what for me, is there combined best efforts to date (although the sitter was pretty good as well).

Alongside our too 'wannabe' super cops though there are some other great characters to keep an eye out for like Channings Science teacher who takes an instant 'over friendly' liking to him and the slightly odd romance between Hill and one of his class mates could be determined as slightly creepy, him being a fully grown adult n'all but it seems to go by the by. 

The laugh out loud moments are pretty much all handled by Hill and Channing which for me, opened up a side to Tatum I'd not seen before.  He's done Romance, Action (if you can call GI-Joe action?) and now comedy - I am not sure where he's aiming for - jack of all trades, master of none? But for me this was a stand out performance and although still a little wooden, seemed to adapt well.  

I could quite easily script out every scene, every moment that made me chuckle and quite happily watch this over  again but that would spoil the fun so do yourself a favour and pop along yourself.  Keep a look out at the end for a brilliantly executed nod to the 1987 original and if like me you are looking for a movie to renew your faith in cinema after John Carter almost took away my will to live then this will get your comedic juices well and truly flowing.

183, John Carter (3d)

What does $250m get you nowadays?  Well, Roman Abramovichs' Yacht will set you back $590m so that's out of the question but a private island is on the cards, so are a few Veyrons and a fleet of Gulf stream G6's and it goes without saying that you can comfortably live on KCF for the rest of your life, you'd even get $200m change from Tamara Ecclesteons pad but one thing you wouldn't want to do is be the person responsible for forking out this much on making John Carter.  Sadly though, someone did and whoever you are, P45 springs to mind!

I so wanted to fall in love with this movie, it had everything from the beefed up Led Zeplin soundtrack on the trailer to stars including Mark Strong, Taylor Kitch & Lynn Collins (both from Wolverine) & Dominic West taking the lad roles, backed up with voice performances from Willem Dafoe & Thomas Hayden Church as a few of the 12 foot aliens it seemed that all of my Sci-fi dreams were coming true. 

My anticipation was at its highest, that was until I watched the 'Review Show' on the BBC(?), Oh Dear.  All my hopes melted quicker that an ice cube in the Sahara as it was dubbed poor, long winded, over priced & badly acted with most of the cast wondering why they signed up for such a donkey of a movie.  The problem was it should have been awesome so what went wrong?

Well, its long - 2hrs in length and you really feel every minute of it with the first 30 minutes all set back in the 1800's during the American Civil War.  I was not aware of the stories so although for people like me this needed to be explained, half an hour of slow, ploddy dialogue was just too much. 

By the way, there is a plot which probably does need some recognition and it sees our hero, Carter (Kitch) on a search for his fortune and on the run from the confederate army when he comes across a resident of Mars hidden in the cave of gold he so eagerly seeks - after a quick fight, Carter find himself transported to Mars where he almost instantly discovers that due to his size and weight, the gravitational pull has given his almost superhuman like strength and an ability to leap phenomenal distances.  After a short time, Carter is captured by a tribe of 12 foot alien beings and once his abilities are discovered he becomes a leader of their armies and goes into battle against Sab Than (West) who is hell bent on capturing one of the last remaining cities, marrying the princess and destroying everything.  It's up to Cater and the band of Tharks to work with Princess Deja (Collins) & her dad, Tardos (Ciaran Hinds) to bring an end to Than's rule.

So, that's the story, simple enough and with the money spent and the special effects it should have been nothing short of spectacular but I have to agree with the critics, even with my highest hopes wanting to ignore the reviews - I too fell into a trap of disappointment and loathing by the time the movie was even half way through.

The sad thing is, I cant put my finger on exactly what was so bad - the effects for the White Apes and the spaceships was as good as lets say the Phantom Menace and the cast have each excelled in previous movies but all together with a drawn out script and too long getting anywhere it just seems like a slow, laborious rumble in the sand and one I could have easily done without.

The adaptation, from comic book author Edgar Rice Burroughs will undoubtedly have its admirers and if your one of those then this may be everything you dreamt it would be, but maybe I was expecting a little too much, wanting it to be the next Star Wars but I was way off target.  For me, too much time was spent in the 1800's and it just seemed to drag on for an eternity with nothing really seeming to get going, the battles over too quickly and the cast looking like they made the biggest mistake of their careers - not to mutter the fateful words 'Water World' but this makes the Kevin Costner mistake almost rectifiable.  Oh, and my final note - as for the 3d, WASTE OF MONEY!

Sorry Disney, normally an admirer of your work I feel the money that went into this could easily have been better spent buying the population of South Korea a Big Mac each (if my maths is right!)

182, Wanderlust

There are few things in life that are certain, luckily one of them is that at 43yrs young, Jennifer Aniston is still looking amazing and knocking out comedy classics at your local multiplex quicker than you can save up the cash and afford the petrol to go and see them and Wanderlust is no exception.

Teaming up with Paul Rudd again after the very funny Horrible Bosses, our Hollywood starlet plays an out of work entrepreneur, sadly though yet to find her niche market but nevertheless, loved up with boyfriend (Rudd).  The pair appear quite happy and content with their Manhattan lifestyles and soon buy a box apartment in the East Village which is overpriced and undersized and for a few days things go fine until Rudd is made redundant and the pair have no choice but to move in with Rudd's brother, a self obsessed Muppet who's living in ignorant bliss of his uselessness.  On-route, our happy couple accidental come across a commune where they spend an exhilarating night that opens their eyes to a whole new world. 

After a few days with the brother the pair cant wait to get away and in desperation head back to the commune as full time residents in a free love and drug fuelled environment which on the surface is all peace and love but after a few weeks they have to deal with each others expectations & temptations.

Its not just Aniston and Rudd that will make you smile in this - there are great performances from Alan Alda,   the beautiful Malin Akerman, the over hairy Justin Theroux and the very naked Joe Lo Truglio and with these four combined with a host of other equally funny commune residents this movie does tickle all the right spots.

What this movie does is manage to brilliantly is just emphasis what city dwellers are prepared to put up for their own little slice of high profile existence compared to the more rural, carefree, hassle less lives of the Forest dwellers - fair enough, the free love and drugs will not be to every ones taste but some of the morals are well received and there is no doubt that this movie is a sweet little romp in the hay with a number of laughs thrown in for good measure.

I do have to admit that I am slowly coming around to Pull Rudd, Aniston had me won over from the early days of Friends but for Paul its taken a while and it was only since Horrible Bosses that I've started to warm to him but with Aniston in tow the pair bounce well off of each other which definitely helps.

Its 91 minutes long and a great little time filler so if you've nothing else on and want a great giggle at someone elses expense then make a point to check this movie out.

181, One for the Money

It was only recently while watching Steven Segal classic 'Under Siege 2' that I noticed his 15yr old niece looked vaguely familiar - and much to my surprise it was a young Katherine Heigl, way back in 1995 in only her 4th movie did our Hollywood sweetheart impress under Segal's wing and 17 years later with titles such as Knocked Up, 27 Dresses, The Ugly Truth, Killers and most recently, New Years Eve under her belt, Heigl is fast becoming the 'Cameron Diaz' for a new generation and her cute naivety wins over audiences time after time.

In One for the Money, Heigle plays a Jersey girl who's out of work, out of love and pretty much out of luck after losing her job as a lingerie sales manager in Macy's.  Desperate for work she hooks up with her cousin, Vinny (I know, corny!) who runs a bail bonds office and Heigl unwittingly sets herself up as a Bounty Hunter, tracking down bail jumpers for cash payouts - her main target - an ex-boyfriend who she has beef with played by Sky 1'sTerra-Nova star, Jason O'Mara.

In her opening hapless attempts at capture, O'Mara comically deals easily with Heigl until she asks one of the offices top hunters, Ranger to assist and as a special ops wannabe takes her under his wing and helps her out when needed - which is most of the time.

Heigl is her normal cute self, only this time upping the ante slightly with a few revealing shower scenes much to her characters embarrassment but again she proves she can do adorable and funny in the same breath.  In addition, she also manages to express a little of her wild side in this with a slight Jersey twang to her accent and a definite swagger in her step.  A new direction for Heigl and a well received one.

As for O'Mara - quite surprised to see him in this after adorning my TV screen weekly in Terra-Nova, I had the same reaction when I saw saw Hawaii 5.0 lead, Alex O'Laughlin appear in The Back Up Plan (2010) so in my mind a TV actor getting a lucky break but in all honesty he coped well and played Heigl's opposition really well.

It does rumble along nicely for 90 minutes this movie with Heigl in almost every scene and some comedy performances from the back-street hookers as her 'ears on the street' as well as her seedy cousin Vinny, his receptionist and an expected performance from movie regular, John Leguizamo.  All in all if you liked Heigl's other movies you can add this to your list as one to watch.